


did you miss me?

by lonelyheartsclub_com



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: F/F, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-01
Updated: 2020-09-05
Packaged: 2021-03-06 20:08:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 3,688
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26234665
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lonelyheartsclub_com/pseuds/lonelyheartsclub_com
Summary: mako hasn't seen prince wu in 3 years. a lot has changed since then but mako's feelings towards the prince haven't.
Relationships: Bolin/Wei (Avatar), Korra/Asami Sato, Lin Beifong/Kya II, Mako/Prince Wu (Avatar)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 63





	1. long time, no see, huh?

**Author's Note:**

> hey y'all, it's wuko week!! i find it rather homophobic of the universe that i go back to school before the end but we'll make it work. enjoy!

Mako was wringing his hands. He hadn’t seen Prince Wu in 3 years. The prince had spent the last few years fixing up The Earth Kingdom after the end of Kuvira’s reign. They had gone their separate ways. His home was the Earth Kingdom. Mako’s was Republic City. Wu was a different person to who he used to be and he didn’t force Mako to stay with him. 

_ “Don’t get too comfortable without me, Mako. I’ll be back with you in Republic City sooner than you think.” _

_“I’ll count on it, Wu.”_

And with that, the prince turned away and walked out of Mako’s life. He cried that night. Things were incomplete without Wu. 

In those 3 years, a lot had changed. Mako had come to terms with who he really was and he had come out. Korra and Asami said they weren’t surprised. But no matter who they tried to set him up with, he stayed single. A boy occasionally caught his attention, but apart from that, he stayed single. 

“You’re single because of Wu, aren’t you?” Korra asked. She could read him like a book. Upside of having a best friend that you used to date, he supposed. 

“What do you mean?”

“You had a thing for him and he left to reform the Earth Kingdom and you...you haven’t been the same since.” Korra was looking him in the eyes. She nodded at Mako’s silence. She placed a hand on his and he pulled away. 

“You don’t know anything! Fuck off!” Mako walked out. Korra used her airbending to shut the door. 

“Well, I sent Wu a letter. He’s coming to Republic City. And word is on the street that he’s not really into women either.” Korra smiled a smile he knew all too well and walked out and walked out. Mako looked out the window and there Asami was, waiting for Korra with a smile on her face. They kissed and Mako looked away, not wanting to see the PDA. 

Bolin was there with his boyfriend Wei Beifong. He was eagerly talking from his facial expressions and Wei was listening with piqued interest. He was a good boyfriend for his little brother. 

Asami walked over to the door and soon she was in Mako’s office. “You coming to the train station? We’re going to go pick up Prince Wu.”

Mako’s blood went ice cold. 

“No.” Asami shrugged and walked off, taking Korra’s arm in hers.

Mako stared at the clock, the ticking sending him slowly crazy. “Kiddo?” It was Lin.

“Chief?”

She was in a good mood today, Mako could tell. Her face was flushed and her hair slightly disheveled. Kya II waved from the window and Mako cocked an eyebrow. 

“If you make any comments, I will fire you.” There was a silence. Lin was inspecting Mako. “What’s the matter, kiddo? You seem in a worse mood than we usually are.” Mako shrugged. 

“Come on.” She nudged him softly. “What’s on your mind, Mako?” She rarely ever called him by his first name. 

He sighed. “It’s Prince Wu. He’s coming back to Republic City and I…” He couldn’t bring himself to say it. 

“You have feelings for him, don’t you?” 

Mako sat there in silence. Lin just looked at him _. Tick. Tick. Tick _ . He nodded. Why was this so hard for him to accept?

Lin put a hand on his shoulder. Then she pulled him into a hug. Mako sobbed into her chest. She seemed to be sitting ramrod straight and she was tense. She was probably uncomfortable. But she relaxed.

“I know, kid. Get it all out before he gets here.” Lin whispered. They sat there for a couple minutes, and then Mako brushed himself off. Lin gave him some sort of a pep talk. 

“I don’t know if Wu likes you back, but you’re a catch. Why wouldn’t he like you back? Anyways, no crying if he doesn’t like you back. That’s enough waterworks for today.”

“Thanks for the, uh, pep talk, Chief Beifong.” Lin saluted and walked out. She looked to her left and looked back at Mako. 

“Knock ‘em dead, kiddo.” She winked and walked off. 

His heart dropped after seeing the Satomobile enter the driveway. It was Asami’s. He sat back in his seat.  _ Tick. Tick. Tick.  _

There was a knock on his door. He’d know that knock anywhere. It was Wu. He opened the door numbly, and in walked Wu. He looked so different. He was a lot taller and he was a lot broader too. At least, his shoulders were. His eyes glittered with the same mischievous glint they had all those years ago, and his dark skin sparkled in the light. 

“Hey, Mako.” He sounded the same. 

“Did you miss me?” He sounded coy. 

“Of course I did.” Mako exclaimed. Wu pulled him in for a hug. Wu’s smell of lime took over all his senses, then the rush of vanilla hit him. He missed that. 

“Glad to hear it.” He said, pulling away, taking all his body heat with him. He shivered. Weird. As a firebender, Mako was usually always warm. Wu was studying the books on Mako’s shelf, purposely looking away from him. 

“Is it true that you...don’t like women?” Wu asked. His tone was indecipherable. 

“Depends why you’re asking, Prince Wu.” Mako tried to keep all emotion out of his voice. He’d never felt this way. 

Wu walked over to him, putting his hands on the desk. “I’m asking because I want to know if I…” he trailed off and broke away from Mako’s gaze. 

Mako softly grabbed his hand and spun him around. 

“If you…?” Mako needed to know.

“Have a chance with you.” Wu whispered. Mako had to process what Wu was implying. Then he leaned in, and he felt fireworks as their lips softly brushed and then joined. Mako had dreamed of this moment for 3 long years, and it was finally happening. 

"I'd say you have a pretty good chance with me." Mako whispered.


	2. there's nothing you could've done.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> wu knows that mako lies awake at night, thinking about things like it's the last thing he'll ever do. he just wishes that he could convince mako that he's a good person.

Wu's mind was racing, and he couldn't sleep. Judging by Mako's short breaths, he wasn't asleep either. It sounded as if he was...crying?

"Mako?" There was no reply. Instead he got up and sulked off. Wu followed him, bumping into various things in their bedroom. He turned on the bathroom light.

Mako was standing in front of the sink. He was sobbing. Wu had never seen him this vulnerable before.

"Mako? C'mon, answer me." Wu said softly. He continued to cry.

Wu walked up to him and softly hugged him from behind, resting his head on Mako's back.

"It's the nightmares, isn't it? What was it this time? Ming-Hua? Your parents?" Wu felt him nod.

"Both. But first it was Ming-Hua. I'm a horrible person for killing her. Wu, how can you even look at me? Get away from me." He jerked away from Wu's embrace, as if he was scared of hurting him.

"And then my parents...I should've saved them. I was too weak, Wu! What if I'm not able to defend you? What if you die too?" Mako walked out of the bathroom, tears streaming down his face.

Wu followed after him. He was sitting on the floor next to their bed with his knees huddled to his chest. Wu sat down next to him softly and simply placed his arms around Mako’s shoulders. This happened rather often. Wu had the occasional panic attack too, and Mako was there for him. He stroked Mako’s raven black hair softly and leaned on his shoulder.

“There was nothing you could’ve done about your parents, love. You and Bolin were both young.” Wu said, playing with his boyfriend’s hair.

Mako leaned into the crook of Wu’s neck. “But Ming-Hua…” Mako trailed off. Wu frowned.

“You know, Mako, I think it’s a shame you can’t forgive yourself for something that had positive effects in the long run.” Mako sighed, and he started crying again. Wu just held him.

He looked up at the clock. It was nearly 5 and he knew that was the time Mako got up to go to work.

 _Beifong’ll understand_ , he thought. _She has Mako’s best interests at heart._

“Wu?” Mako asked. His voice was softer than Wu had ever heard it before.

“Yes, love?” Wu found his hand in the darkness.

“I love you.” The firebender whispered.

“I love you too, Mako. More than you’ll ever know.” Wu said, smiling slightly. Mako didn’t reply. Wu knew he had fallen asleep. He smiled to himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wuko week day 2 y'all! i nearly forgot (i have a terrible memory) but here we are. i know mako's a little ooc in this, but i feel like he's defo more vulnerable around prince wu. also i STRUGGLED to write this omg wuko are too pure for angst


	3. sorry, buddy.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> korra didn't show up in republic city like she was supposed to. mako's pretty down in the dumps about it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tw graphic description of death  
> today's wuko week prompt is roleswap so wu is the stuck up asshole and mako is the talkative pain in the ass (wu's still the prince and mako's still the bodyguard tho)  
> enjoy

_Wu sighed. Did Mako have to be...so clingy? He was always flirting with ‘dames’ too. Dames? What is this, 50AG?_

_“Hey, Prince Wu! I just got a date.” He said, waggling those absolutely terrible eyebrows of his. “Hm. Let me pretend I care!” Wu paused for a moment. “Okay, I’m done.”_

_The prince made no effort to keep the bitter edge out of his voice. He was jealous. Not of the fact that he probably paid some poor girl to go on a date with him. He was more jealous of the girl. Frankly speaking, he had a crush on his bodyguard, and he didn’t know what to do. Mako was talking his ear off about some girl he’d made out with a week ago. Gross._

_Wu fidgeted with his brooch, the gold gleaming in the sun. It was the only thing that he really had left of his family. He still remembered seeing the blood from his mother’s body seep towards him after the assassin pulled the blade from her chest, letting her drop to the ground, whilst the brooch lay on the floor, mere inches away from her fingers because she had dropped it. Wu remembered taking it and running, tears blurring his vision. He remembered smelling the acrid, metallic smell of blood and he remembered seeing the stain of his mother’s blood on the golden brooch, the gold gleaming in the sun. He immediately looked away, feeling sick._

“You’re not like everyone else, Wu. You’re different. And I don’t mean that in a good way.” _He thought about what his aunt Hou-Ting had said all the time. It was always on his mind. Sometimes Wu wondered if she knew the truth. Would she hate him? From what Wu remembered of his aunt, she wasn’t the kindest. It was like his family was haunting him at all times._

_“Wu? Prince Wu? You, uh, zoned out again.” It was Mako. His eyes were the same colour as the gold on Wu’s brooch. He always felt better after looking into Mako’s eyes. The warmth in them always reassured the prince that things would be okay._

_“Sorry, Mako. But do me a favour and shut up about the latest girl you made out with. I’d rather not hear about it.”_

_“When was the last time you even got a date with a girl? Judging by the state of you, I’d say it’s been years.” Mako laughed. Wu scowled and he stopped._

_“But seriously, Wu. Is something the matter?” Wu looked around. They had strolled around the gardens in front of the palace. The truth was, Wu didn’t want to date girls. He sighed and looked around, hoping no one was there._

_“Mako, I’m gay.” Wu blurted out. He stared at Wu in disbelief._

_“Does anyone else know?” Mako asked. Wu shook his head._

_“This doesn’t change anything between us, you know. We’re still friends.” Mako said after a while. Wu had never been more happy to hear anything in his entire life._

That was 3 years ago. Wu and Mako had grown a lot closer. Mako’s personality hadn’t, though. He was still irritating and clingy, but he talked about girls less.

Wu had started seeing him in a different light. Today was the day Avatar Korra was supposed to come back to Republic City. Wu was excited to meet her. Properly, of course. He’d briefly seen her a few days after his great-aunt’s death.

Mako hadn’t stopped talking. “Yes, Mako, I know you’re excited to see Korra again, but please, for the love of Yangchen, shut the fuck up.”

Hours passed and Korra hadn’t showed up. It had been hours and she wasn’t there. Mako and Asami looked utterly broken. Her parents thought she had come back to Republic City already.

She was missing. No one knew where she was.

Mako cried on the ride back to the safe house. Wu didn’t know what to say. “Mako, buddy…”

Wu frowned and put his hand on the firebender’s shoulder, patting it gently. They had reached the safe house and it was silent. Mako hadn’t said a word. “Forget it, Wu.”

He said, getting up to leave. Wu took his hand and spun him around into a hug. Mako seemed shocked. “No. You don’t seem okay, and I care about you.”

Wu said, his hand on Mako’s shoulder. “You...what?”

“Care about you? Of course I do, Mako! Are you an idiot or something? I-” He caught himself before he could finish that sentence.

The room fell into silence for a moment. “What were you about to say, Prince Wu?” Mako rarely ever called him that.

His voice was trembling slightly. Wu bit his lip for a moment, considering what to do. He looked around, and he leaned up, pulling Mako down to his level by grabbing his white tank top. He kissed the firebender on the lips gently.

“I may or may not have feelings for you.” Wu said, finally.

“Is that so, Wu?” His cheeks had a pink tint and his hair was slightly mussed. Wu tried to bite back a smile, to no avail. “Shut up, before I fire you.” Wu said, laughing.


	4. it's your birthday, dumbass!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> it's mako's birthday and he forgot. wu being wu just wouldn't stand for that

Mako opened his eyes, and he swore harshly. Wu was shaking him. 

“Okay, okay, I got it! I’ll get up!” He pulled himself up into a sitting position and glared at the prince.

“Do you know what day it is today?” Wu asked excitedly. Mako’s mind blanked. 

“I- uh…” Wu stared at his boyfriend in disbelief. 

“It’s your birthday, idiot!” Wu leaned over and kissed Mako softly. 

“Oh, right. Well, I have work today.” Mako said, pulling on his shirt and heading to the bathroom to go brush his teeth. 

“Not today, you don’t. I’ve already spoken to Chief Beifong, so you can get yourself back into bed so we can cuddle and then I can make you breakfast in bed. How’s that sound?” Wu said, beaming up at his boyfriend. Mako had realised that Wu was wearing his shirt. It was too big for him and he was messing with the sleeves.

Mako stuttered. “Ugh. Fine.” He said finally, a small smile quirking at the corner of his lips. 

Wu looked adorable. He was a great cuddler, too. 

He clung to Mako’s midsection, leaning his head on his chest. Mako loved mornings like this one. 

He ran his hands through Wu’s hair softly.  
“You’re 27 now.” Wu said.

“That’s scarily close to 30.” Mako admittedly was scared of getting to 30. 

“You still have three years. Make the most of those. And plus, it’s not like life ends at 30.” 

“I hate how optimistic you are.” 

Wu’s lips curled into a sly smile. “You love it, don’t lie.”  
Mako rolled his eyes fondly.   
After a comfortable silence had settled over the two, Mako started to doze off. He felt Wu leave and wanted to cling to him and ask for him to stay but he had a reputation. He’d never embarrass himself like that. 

Wu tapped him on the shoulder to wake him up. 

“Promised you breakfast in bed, didn’t I?” His smile was brighter than the sun filtering through the blinds in their apartment. 

“You’re sweet, but a terrible cook. We’ve talked about this, babe.” Mako said, smiling. 

Wu flipped him off. “I worked hard on this! It can’t be that bad.” Mako shuddered thinking about the last time Wu cooked. They had to call Korra over to waterbend the fire out.

“You’re right.” Mako inhaled sharply and took a bite of one of the pancakes. He spat it right back out. 

Wu frowned. “Is it that bad?”

Mako nodded slowly. “Look, babe, I love you, but you are an awful cook.” He bit back the urge to laugh.

Wu pouted. Mako kissed him on the lips. 

“At least I make up for that in everything else.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> y'all i am so sorry-


	5. i can't live with him!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> mako has to live in a safe house with prince wu. alone. just the two of them.

_Mako woke to the smell of bacon and the noise of his mother shouting at Bolin. He swore loudly as Naoki walked into his room holding his little sister in her arms._

_“Excuse me, Mako? Watch your language!” Naoki reprimanded._

_“Sorry, ma,” he said, running a hand through his bedhead. She kissed him on the forehead and walked out._

_“Your lunch for today is downstairs, by the way!” she shouted as an after thought. He flopped back into bed._

_There was a knock on the door. “Ugh, what?” It was Bolin._

_“Chief Beifong wants to speak to you.” He had the phone in his hands. Mako ran his hands through his hair irritably and held his hand out for Bolin to hand him the phone._

_“Hey, Chief.”_

_“Morning, Mako. I have an assignment for you, so mind coming into work early?”_

_Seriously?_

_“Sure. See you there, Chief.” He hung up abruptly._

_Fuck._

_By the time he had reached the police station, it was 6:30. Agni, it was early._

_Turns out Lin wanted him to bodyguard the prince of the Earth Kingdom. He was probably a snooty little bitch, so that didn’t help. He walked into the station extravagantly, humming a tune that got on Mako’s nerves. Mako’s first good look at him was at 6AM, when he was still half asleep and hadn’t eaten yet._

_The prince pulled him into a tight hug, wrapping his lanky arms around Mako’s midsection._

_He shoved him away. “How about you don’t hug me?”_

_He frowned and rolled his eyes. “Fine then. Be a Negative Nancy. Anyways, I’m Prince Wu.”_

_Mako could feel heat creeping up onto his face. “I know.” He said quietly._

_“Well, what’s your name? Or should I just call you Bodyguard?”_

_Mako scowled. “I’m Mako.” Wu nodded._

_He linked his arm with Mako, who withdrew his hand._

_“Oh, come on!” Wu nudged Mako._

_This was going to be a long few years, huh? First Korra leaves to go heal and Bolin leaves to go work for that Kuvira woman and now this little shit? Unbelievable._

***

Mako woke to the smell of bacon and the sound of his mother shouting at his father. He swore loudly as he realised he’d have to get up for work early.

“Watch your language, Mako!” Naoki reprimanded from outside his room.

He looked at himself in the mirror, checking the date. It had been 2 years since Korra had left and Bolin had left to go work for Kuvira. 2 years.

Tears welled up in his eyes. There was a knock at the door. It was Naoki. He quickly wiped his tears, but Naoki saw him. “Mako, what’s the matter?”

His mother stood behind him, putting her hands on his shoulder. They were warm. He had only just realised how similar he and his mother looked.

He turned around and hugged his mother, crying softly. “I miss them, mama. I miss Korra and Bolin.”

“I know, love. I miss them too.” Naoki said softly. Mako’s mother gave the best hugs. When Mako was in her embrace it felt like she was protecting him from the rest of the world. “You’ll be late for work, Mako-chan. Get going. I’ll see you later.” She kissed him on the forehead.

“Bye, ma.” Mako said, pulling on his uniform.

It was bright and early when Mako stepped out of his house. He checked his wristwatch. 6:45. 15 minutes late. Shit.

Lin didn’t seem too mad when he arrived, luckily.

“Mako, after an attack on Prince Wu’s life yesterday whilst you were off duty, we’ve decided that you and him will be living in a safe house. Together. Since we don’t trust anyone else, it’ll just be you and him.” Lin said. Mako’s jaw dropped.

“Lin! You can’t do this! Isn’t there something you can do? I refuse to-” Lin held up a hand.

Her gaze suggested that she didn’t want to hear it. “Too bad, Mako. This is how it has to be.” Lin said coldly.

She held out a piece of paper. “There’s the address. Make sure no one sees it.” Mako took it.

The safe house was terrible. It was dingy and damp and the icing on the cake? Prince Wu’s continuous whining.

“How am I supposed to sleep on this?” Wu pointed at the double bed. It didn’t look very comfy.

Mako left the room in search of another bed only for it to hit him: there was only one bed.

Are you fucking serious?

“Mako, there’s only-”

“One bed. I know.” Mako cut him off. He didn’t want to hear him say it.

“Does that mean…?” Wu trailed off.

“That we have to share? Probably.” Fuck.

Night fell quickly. They ate some lumpy soup and bread for dinner. “Look, Wu. This won’t be the worst if you just cooperate with me. And by that I mean not whining every two seconds and actually attempting to go to sleep.”

He huffed. “Whatever.”

Lying in bed with Wu was awkward. They had sectioned off the bed in the middle so that they would each have a side to themselves. “Goodnight, Wu.” Mako was extremely aware of his heartbeat.

“Night, Mako.” Wu sounded like he was already half asleep.

***

When Mako opened his eyes, the first thing he realised was that he had his arms around someone. He couldn’t be bothered to open his eyes, but then he remembered the events of yesterday. He opened his eyes to see Wu, clinging to Mako’s chest. He blushed and looked down at the prince. He looked so peaceful. He didn’t have the heart to push him off. He put his arms back around the prince and let him sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is an au where naoki and san (bolin and mako's parents) never died and so mako is a teensy bit more open. as an older sibling, i still think that he'd be a little closed off. anyways, enjoy!


End file.
